Prospect Talent Score

Probability of Success

History

2008-09: Brandon Davidson skated in four games for the Olds Grizzlies of the Alberta Junior Hockey League as a 17-year-old and played for the Lethrdbridge Y's Titans in Alberta Midget AAA hockey. He had four assists for the Grizzlies and scored 13 goals with 11 assists in 42 games for the Titans. In seven playoff games with the Titans he scored 2 goals with 5 assists and had 14 PMs.

2009-10: In his WHL rookie season, Davidson, a non-drafted free agent, played in 59 games for the Regina Pats. He scored 1 goal and added 33 assists for 34 points while posting a team-high +15 rating and 37 penalty minutes. Ranked 48th amongst North American skaters in Central Scouting's final rankings, Davidson was selected by the Oilers in the sixth round (162nd overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft.

2010-11: Davidson made his pro hockey debut appearing in two games with the Oklahoma City Barons, including one AHL playoff contest, following his second season with the WHL's Regina Pats. Davidson had no points or penalty minutes and was an even plus/minus with three shots on goal in limited action with the Barons. One of two Regina players to skate in all 72 games, Davidson was the club's third leading scorer as a defenseman with 8 goals and 44 assists and was -5 with 71 PMs on a Pats team that had the WHL's third-worst record.

2011-12: Davidson attended his second Oilers camp and returned to Regina for his third season Skating for the Pats as a 20-year-old, he was the team's third-leading scorer with 13 goals and 36 assists in 69 games and was plus-26 with 83 penalty minutes. Regina finished fourth in the East Division. Davidson skated in the first four games of the five-game first round playoff series with Moose Jaw, suffering a dislocated shoulder in game four. He had 1 assist and was plus-three with 6 penalty minutes.

2012-13: Davidson played six games for the Edmonton AHL affiliate Oklahoma City before being diagnosed with testicular cancer. He began treatment in November and made his return to hockey in February, playing two games with the Barons before being loaned to ECHL Stockton for 11 games. He returned to Oklahoma City in March and finished the season with the Barons. Davidson scored 2 goals with 3 assists and was +4 with 14 penalty minutes in 26 regular season games. The Barons finished third in the South Division and reached the Western Conference finals. Davidson had 6 assists and was -1 with 2 penalty minutes in 17 playoff games. In 11 games with Stockton he scored 7 goals, including two in his first game, and had 5 assists; finishing +7 with 4 penalty minutes.

Talent Analysis

A late bloomer in every sense, Davidson is a no-nonsense, all-around defenseman. He does not excel in any one area, nor does he have too many glaring weaknesses. He could stand to be better when it comes to some of the finer points of his skating, pivots in particular, and he seems to be very adept at making the first pass out of the zone, but on the whole he is the kind of calm, unremarkable player coaches love to count on.

Future

After being diagnosed with testicular cancer on November 1, 2012 and undergoing chemotherapy, Davidson made a much-anticipated return to professional hockey with the ECHL’s Stockton Thunder in the second half of the 2012-13 season. He seemed like he had never missed a beat, logging 12 points in 11 games and showing that he has some offense and can play some good hockey, health considerations aside. He will likely continue to split time between the AHL and ECHL in 2013-14, providing that he stays healthy.

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Photo: Edmonton Oilers prospect Jujhar Khaira has worked hard to develop a complete game in his rookie season with Oklahoma City (courtesy of John Rivera/Icon Sportswire)

Changes are afoot within the Edmonton Oilers organization – most notably with the firing of head coach Dallas Eakins and the promotion of former Oklahoma City Barons head coach Todd Nelson to interim head coach of the Oilers. Also important to note in this year’s minor league update is the dissolution of the relationship between the Edmonton Oilers and the Oklahoma City Barons, effective at the end of the 2014-15 season. It has been reported that in 2015-16, the Oilers’ farm team will be relocating to Bakersfield, California, where the Oilers-owned ECHL team, the Bakersfield Condors, currently play.

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Photo: Laurent Brossoit has strengthened Edmonton’s goaltending depth in the prospect ranks, which was once an area of weakness for the team. (courtesy of Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images)

While the Edmonton Oilers continue to rebuild and retool their squad at the NHL level, their diverse group of prospects have been flourishing for the most part, with a number taking significant steps under the tutelage of Todd Nelson of the Oklahoma City Barons (AHL).

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Darnell Nurse recorded 50 points in 64 games while also serving as captain of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. (courtesy of Aaron Bell/OHL Images)

The Fall 2014 edition of the Edmonton Oilers Top 20 remained relatively steadfast among the top five spots save for the addition of newcomer to the list and 2014 third-overall draft selection Leon Draisaitl. Once again, the Top 20 is dominated by defensive prospects but two strong power forwards, Mitch Moroz and Jujhar Khaira (both drafted in 2012), continue to turn heads as they make a push up the rankings and look toward having a strong training camp performance. Goaltender Laurent Brossoit is pulling away from the pack of Oilers goaltending prospects, proving himself the clear front-runner for a chance at an NHL job after a strong rookie professional season.

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Photo: A consistent contributor at both ends for AHL Oklahoma City, defenseman Martin Marincin debuted with the Oilers in a two-game NHL stint in early December (courtesy of Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images)

The Oilers’ minor league prospect pool is an interesting mix of elite-caliber defensemen, a few mid-level picks that are hanging on to the last fringes of their professional career (at least as an Oilers prospect) and a few that could go either direction, depending if they are able to take that next step.